In both residential and commercial building construction, the walls of a below-grade foundation must be finished to form a living space or a business or workspace. Typically, for residential homes, the basement walls are formed from poured concrete, and sometimes from cinderblocks or concrete blocks that are cemented together. These concrete walls may first be waterproofed through the application of a sealant, and then must have a plurality of framing members attached over the concrete. The framing members may each be in the form of a wood stud, which may be conventional 2×4 studs, or may instead be 2×2 strips or even furring strips. Alternatively, the framing member may be a PVC stud. The framing members provide a gap to accommodate electrical wiring, any necessary plumbing, and thermal insulation. The size for the framing members used may affect the type and amount of insulation that can be used.
Conventional construction next requires that plasterboard (i.e., drywall) be fastened to the framing members on the walls, using drywall screws or nails, which is similarly done for the wall studs of a room for above-grade construction. The drywall fasteners driven in below the surface of the drywall, the joints between the sheets of the drywall (typically 4×8 sheets), and the joints at the corners of the room, will next be covered with one or more layers of a joint compound (“mud”). The joints will also require an application of one or more layers of tape or drywall mesh, before applying the joint compound, which serves to prevent cracks along the joint lines. The joint compound must later be sanded to be smooth with respect to the surface of the drywall.
The sanding process produces a significant amount of fine white power on the floor, which must be cleaned up, and produces airborne particulates, which constitute a serious health hazard, as the Centers for Disease Control maintains that prolonged exposure to the silica therein increases the risk of lung cancer, or may just cause breathing problems and may aggravate asthma. Therefore, it is strongly recommended that the person performing the work should wear a respiratory mask and goggles while sanding the drywall, and while vacuuming up the powder.
Once the mudded drywall joints and nail holes have been sanded smooth, the walls must be primed and painted. Prior to painting, the stud locations should be conveniently marked at the extremes of the wall, or on the floor, because the next step is to nail the base molding and crown molding thereto, which must be nailed to the framing members, as the drywall does not provide sufficient support. A chair rail molding may also be nailed to the framing members at the appropriate above-floor height, if desired.
This process is very labor intensive and time consuming, particularly because the layers of joint compound require a sufficient amount of time to dry before the sanding can occur, and because of the time required to clean up after the sanding is competed, which may need to be done one or more times.
The present invention greatly simplifies the process of constructing a finished interior surface, once the framing members are applied over the concrete wall, and eliminates the powder, the particulates, and the associated health hazards. The present invention furthermore permits ease of replacement, or the cleaning of a wall section, and provides easy access behind a wall section to fix or add electrical wiring, etc.